MOTO CONTINUO
NV6003
Osias Wilenski, Nicholas Anthony Ascioti, Diane Jones, John A. Carollo, Robert Fleisher, Brian Noyes | Trio Casals
TORNADO PROJECT
RR7908
Ricardo Climent, Robert Rowe, Paul Wilson, Andrew May, Eric Lyon, Russell Pinkston | Esther Lamneck, Elizabeth McNutt
As a ferocious wind storm spins up all things in its path, The Tornado Project, conceived by composers Ricardo Climent and Paul Wilson, cuts a path through the repertoire of 21st-century electroacoustic music, presenting a collection of works for flute, clarinet, and computer-generated sound that explore the chaotic beauty of this trio. With performances by two American wind virtuosi – clarinetist Esther Lamneck and flutist Elizabeth McNutt – these works showcase the skills of the musicians, their dynamic relationships with the computer, and the composers’ innovative, colorful, and resourceful styles.
The result of an eight-year integrated process of collaborations and performances, this self-titled release on Ravello Records showcases six works from a diverse group of contemporary composers on either side of the Atlantic, including Ricardo Climent, Paul Wilson, Robert Rowe, Andrew May, Eric Lyon, and Russell Pinkston. These composers create mysterious and turbulent sonic worlds by incorporating extended techniques, primal and ethereal computer-generated sounds, and improvisation. READ MORE
PLAYFUL EDGE OF THE WAVE
RR7909
Robert J. Martin / Neely Bruce | Shirley Blankenship
A SINISTER ENDEAVOR
BR8941
Gay Pearson Quintet
On her debut Big Round Records release, A SINISTER ENDEAVOR, composer and pianist Gay Pearson presents a collection of works that highlight her eclectic quintet – consisting of piano, bass, drums, flute, and cello – and their colorful, introspective, and energetic performances. Recorded live in Newburyport MA, this album presents original works by Pearson, including Zonal and Meridional Flow, with its classical counterpoint and 4-part polyphony; the energetic solo piano piece Cirrus High; and An Ionian Emitter, which uses complex rhythms and syncopation.
Pearson and her quintet display their melancholy and poignant side with ballads such as Joseph’s Kosma’s Autumn Leaves, Blue Moment, and Barry Manilow’s When October Goes. Sally Lutyens’ Evening Song is a mysterious and romantic promenade-like piece that is given an emotive and yearning interpretation by Pearson, flutist Lea Pearson, and cellist Shannon Allen. These live performances capture the technical and passionate presence of Pearson and her quintet, showing their abilities in settings of improvisation, classical structures, and jazz gestures. READ MORE
BIG ROUND SOUND VOL. 1
BR8942
Various Artists
Big Round Record’s first installment of its compilation series, BIG ROUND SOUND VOL. 1, presents a deep cross-section of the label’s contemporary and eclectic catalog. From jazz and world music to folk, fusion, and progressive rock, this album features performances by Tony R. Clef, the Oscuro Quintet, Andy Jaffe and Branford Marsalis, Sophie Dunér, the Larksong Trio, Anne Vanschothorst, Juan Álamo, Jean-Philippe Grégoire, and more in works by Christina Rusnak, Svjetlana Bukvich, Sebastiano Meloni, Ecco La Musica, Bunny Beck, and others. READ MORE